Bulgarian VAT Registration Threshold: ECJ Case on Timely Application and EU VAT Rules

A Bulgarian company, Lagafact, is in dispute with the Tax Authority over VAT registration and payment.
Lagafact exceeded the VAT registration threshold but applied for registration after the seven-day deadline.
The Tax Authority issued a tax adjustment notice, claiming penalties and interest.
The Administrative Court ruled in favor of Lagafact, stating the tax adjustment notices were unlawful.
The Supreme Administrative Court referred three questions to the ECJ for a preliminary ruling.
The first question asks if a national provision differentiating taxable persons based on registration speed contradicts EU VAT principles.
The second question asks if EU VAT allows national rules to make tax exemptions dependent on timely registration.
The third question asks for criteria to determine if late registration liability is a penalty under EU VAT.
The ECJ discussed Recital 49 and Articles 2, 213, 214, 273, and 287 of the EU VAT Directive.

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.